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Sergei Bobrovsky
| birth_place = Novokuznetsk, Russian SFSR, Soviet Union | draft = Undrafted | career_start = 2006 |}} Sergei Bobrovsky (born Sergei Andreyevich Bobrovsky on September 20, 1988) is a Russian professional ice hockey goaltender currently playing for the Columbus Blue Jackets of the National Hockey League (NHL). He won the Vezina Trophy for the 2012–13 regular season after posting a 21–11–6 record and a .932 save percentage. Playing Career Philadelphia Flyers (2010-2012) Sergei was never drafted into the NHL. Philadelphia Flyers General Manager Paul Holmgren has said that the Flyers considered drafting him during the 2006 NHL Entry Draft, but he ultimately decided not to given the difficulty of signing Russian players at the time. After Sergei played his first four professional seasons with Metallurg Novokuznetsk in Russia, he signed a three-year, entry-level contract with the Flyers on May 6, 2010. Sergei was initially slated to begin his North American career with the American Hockey League's Adirondack Phantoms, but after he impressed coaches during training camp, he replaced the injured starter Michael Leighton on the roster. Even after Leighton recovered, Sergei continued to share duties with Brian Boucher. The Flyers head coach Peter Laviolette named Sergei as the starting goaltender for the opening game of the 2010–11 season against the Pittsburgh Penguins on October 7, 2010. In Sergei's NHL debut, he picked up a 3–2 win and was named the game's first star in the first regular season game at Pittsburgh's Consol Energy Center. Sergei became the youngest goaltender (at 22 years & 17 days old) to win a season-opening game for the Flyers, eclipsing Ron Hextall]], who started at 22 years and 159 days on October 9, 1986. He was also the first Flyers rookie goaltender to win his NHL debut since Antero Niittymaki in 2004. Sergei enjoyed a successful rookie season in posting a 28-13-8 record along with a .915 save percentage. However, after a disappointing showing during the playoffs in which Sergei was often benched in favor of backup Brian Boucher, the Flyers signed Ilya Bryzgalov to a nine-year contract to be the new starter. Columbus Blue Jackets (2012-current) On June 22, 2012 (after a year backing up Bryzgalov), Sergei was traded to the Columbus Blue Jackets in exchange for Columbus' second-round draft choice, a fourth-round pick in the 2012 NHL Entry Draft and Phoenix's fourth-round pick in the 2013 NHL Entry Draft. As a result of the 2012–13 NHL lockout, Sergei signed a contract with SKA Saint Petersburg of the Kontinental Hockey League, but he began playing for the Blue Jackets when the lockout finished. After splitting time early in the season, Sergei supplanted Steve Mason as Columbus's starting goaltender; it was his first time as a starter since his rookie season in Philadelphia. Sergei was instrumental in the Blue Jackets' push for a playoff spot, which ultimately came up just short, as the team finished in 9th place in the Western Conference. Despite this, he had 21 wins and career highs of a 2.00 GAA and a .932 save percentage. With this performance, he was awarded the Vezina Trophy, awarded to the league's top goaltender. On July 1, 2013, Sergei signed a $5,625,000 a year contract for 2 years for the Columbus Blue Jackets. On July 3, 2013, he was named to the NHL First All-Star Team. On December 3, 2013, Sergie got injured in a game versus the Tampa Bay Lightning and would be out for 4-5 weeks. He returned to action on January 6, 2014 against the New York Rangers. Career Statistics Playoff Statistics International Statistics Awards & Achievements *NHL Rookie of the Month: November 2010 *NHL First Star of the Week: Week ending March 10, 2013 *NHL Third Star of the Week: Week ending March 17, 2013 *NHL Third Star of the Month: March 2013 *NHL First Star of the Week: Week ending April 14, 2013 *Finalist as Cover Model for video game NHL 14 *2013 THN Patrick Roy Award (Best Goalie) *2013 Vezina Trophy *2013 NHL First All-Star Team International Play Russia}} Sergei participated in the 2007 Super Series, an eight-game series between Canadian and Russian juniors commemorating the 35th anniversary of the 1972 Summit Series and garnered the most ice-time of any goaltender. At the end of that year, he played in the 2008 World Junior Ice Hockey Championships, backstopping Russia to a bronze medal. Personal Life On August 16, 2011, Sergei married Olga Dorokova. Category:Columbus Blue Jackets players Category:Philadelphia Flyers players Category:Goaltenders Category:Russian ice hockey goaltenders